Paul tells us that ‘all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.’ (2 Tim 3:16-17) This does not mean, however, that Scripture answers all our questions; there are many questions we have about which the Bible is frustratingly silent! In Acts 28, for example, after years of imprisonment and journeying, we still do not know what happened about Paul’s appeal to Caesar or about his relationship with the Roman church. This highlights for us that what we need to know compared to what we would like to know is often very different.
The difference between needs and wants is one which runs through the Bible. Phil 4:19 assures us ‘my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.’ Jesus urged us not to worry about food or clothing: ‘your heavenly Father knows that you need them,’ He reminded us, telling us that if we put God first, ‘all these things will be given to you as well.’ (Matt 6:32-33) We would be naïve, however, to assume that the many verses which remind us of God’s lavish generosity (e.g. Ps 84:11, James 1:17, 1 John 5:14-15) give us carte blanche to demand ridiculously selfish things from Him. There is a difference between what is needful and what is simply our desire, and we do well, like Paul, to learn contentment in God. (Phil 4:10-13)
